Recommendations on teams (Buy, Hold, or Sell) based on their schedules through the month of October.
BUY
Manchester City
Juventus; NUFC; @Blackpool; Lech Poznan; Arsenal; @Wolves
- European matches are at home and their Premier League opponents won't worry them. And yes, I'm including Arsenal in that list.
Manchester United
@Valencia; @Sunderland; West Brom; Bursapor; @Stoke; Wolves (Carling Cup); Spurs
- Matches get easier as the month goes on
Fulham
@West Ham; Spurs; @West Brom; Wigan
- No distractions for Fulham with decent home matches and a bit of a break on the road
Bolton
@West Brom; Stoke; @Wigan; Liverpool
- Not that we ever bet on, or against Bolton, but... "no distractions... with decent home matches and a bit of a break on the road"
HOLD
Newcastle United
@Citeh; Wigan; @West Ham; Arsenal; Sunderland
- Mixed bag of matches with Sunderland being a derby match, but Wigan and West Ham have nice potential.
West Ham United
Ful; @Wolves; NUFC; Stoke (Carling Cup); @Arsenal; @BRM; West Brom; Blackpool; @Liverpool; Wigan
- They might be higher on the list if they weren't such crap, but @Arsenal (maybe @LIV but who's to say these days?) is their worst match through the end of November!
Wigan Athletic
Wolves; @NUFC; Bolton; Swansea (Carling Cup); @Fulham
- Same logic applies here as to West Ham. You're not racing to buy, but you're not desperate to sell with a fixture list that looks like:
SELL
Spurs
Twente; Villa; @Ful; @Inter; Everton; @ManU
- Not doing well after midweek CL matches, which precede their next two home matches
Chelsea
@L'Om; Arsenal; @Villa; @Spartak Moscow; Wolves; @Rovers
- I'm not saying run out and sell your Chelsea players, but if you were looking to free up some cash, or differentiate yourself from your rivals, but... home to Arsenal always bodes well for Chelsea, but Villa gives them problems and the "easy" game against Wolves is preceded by a long trip to Moscow in midweek.
Blackpool
@Liverpool; Citeh; @BRM; West Brom (11/1)
- Darlings for their performances so far, with Adam a fantasy favorite, but...
Aston Villa
@Spurs; Chelsea; @Sunderland; Burnley (Carling Cup); BRM
- The new manager saw them past Wolves, but... no gimmes and a contentious derby at the end of the month
Jer - I like your point on selling Chelsea but I think the compelling point here is that not only does the schedule get tougher but that we really have no idea how they'll hold up against top half competition. Last week we assumed Arsenal's last second draw was a blip and not a sign of things to come and then came WBA. Seems to me that everyone is writing off CHE's loss to Citeh as a one-off but I have to say, I'm not impressed by their defense at all. The attack should be good most weeks but the defenders have the potential to wilt under better attacks.
ReplyDelete"They might be higher on the list if they weren't such crap"
ReplyDeleteYes they were utterly rubbish for the first few games of the season, but they actually have a reasonable team, who are just starting to get it together a little bit.
I think Grant is finding out who his best 11 are now, and i reckon they'll improve no end over the next couple of months.
Neal -- that sounds like wishful thinking from an Arsenal fan who wants to believe his team can contend (with an inconsistent defense and horrible goalie). Unless there are several injuries, there is no reason to believe a starting back 6 of Mikel, Ivanovic, Terry, Alex, Cole, and Cech will have major problems. Add Bosingwa, Ferreira, and Zhirkov, and there is decent depth except at center back (where Ivanovic is also more than capable). I agree, from a Yahoo Fantasy Football perspective, Chelsea defenders are probably overpriced. But as a fan of the team, I am not worried about the D against any team, including Arsenal!
ReplyDeletePS: I like the blog. Just wanted to get in a little @#$% talking before the big game Sunday.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if I buy your Man Utd assessment either. @Sund and @Stoke are very difficult assignments - esp considering Sund's hot performances recently. Man Utd almost gave up points to an under-performing Liverpool side at Old Trafford, and w/ Rooney's absence, their high fantasy scorers have been hot and cold (Nani/Berbs - never know when they're gonna have a break out performance). I'd Hold, and maybe even sell, esp w/ the age in midfield which surely can't hold up for another heavy month of multiple competitions.
ReplyDeleteGood points, Geoff. Maybe they're a "hold".
ReplyDeleteDoes the sell apply to Bale / VDV etc.? Dropped drogba before city game....was thinking about Bale too since the joining of VDV... what to do?
ReplyDeleteWhat to do, indeed. For me... I'm considering selling Bale to fund other purchases. However, I think VdV is a keeper. He's half of Bale's price and 'arry is already excited for a Defoe/VdV partnership. I think he'll get every chance to shine for Spurs and will be a boon for fantasy managers.
ReplyDeletethanks a lot jeremy. i've been a regular reader...i definitely check this site too much but i love reading all the articles you guys post! keep up the good work!! =)
ReplyDeleteWow, Jeremy. Thanks a lot. Very good information. Keep it up.
ReplyDeleteDeviLxDeviL
I used to like this blog but I have noticed over the past few weeks how anti Tottenham this site has been. Maybe you guys can take a leaf out of AMs blog and not be biased against any club.
ReplyDelete@Michael... it's a lot easier to not be biased against your club when AM is a SPURS fan, you twat.
ReplyDelete@Josh - Maybe read correctly before making any statements - "Maybe you guys can take a leaf out of AMs blog and not be biased against any club." I meant that he isnt biased against Arsenal, if you read through his blog he treats all teams equal, unlike the past few weeks on here.
ReplyDeleteJeremy also talks about a Defoe/VDV partnership, something that cannot come into fruitation until Christmas time.
@Michael, it's not me. It's 'arry
ReplyDeleteTottenham boss Redknapp desperate for Defoe to play with Van der Vaart
"Yeah, it suits Van der Vaart, that position. I could see Defoe playing with this fella."
etc.
Otherwise, I find it hard to read what we've written and detect any bias. Yes, Neal is a Gooner, but he's a fantasy owner and that crosses any sort of allegiances. Spurs haven't done well this month - D, D, W, L, L - and there hasn't been great return on their player's fantasy stats. Their schedule is going to be tougher going forward. Where is the "we hate Spurs" in those concepts?
Actually guys, I don't know if you've found this on the net yet? Quite an interesting article on using Yahoo Fantasy Football to predict football results for people who bet on games?
ReplyDeletehttp://imawinnercouk.wordpress.com/2010/09/27/fantasy-football-can-you-use-it-to-win-real-money/
Josh - is there any need to be so rude?
ReplyDelete